Invitation to Tender. Instructions to Potential Suppliers

Transcription

1 Invitation to Tender Instructions to Potential Suppliers DWP Recruitment of Nest Trustees Ref: ABN-C /11/2013 1

2 CONTENTS Page 1. GENERAL INFORMATION 3 2. ADMINISTRATION OF THE PROCUREMENT PROCESS 3 3. CONDITIONS APPLYING TO THIS TENDER 4 4. DATA SECURITY TRANSFER OF UNDERTAKINGS (TUPE) FREEDOM OF INFORMATION PROCUREMENT TIMETABLE TENDER SUBMISSION PROCESS TENDER EVALUATION CONTRACT AWARD POST CONTRACT AWARD DWP COMPLAINTS PROCEDURE 32 2

3 INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION ON TENDERING PROCEDURES 1. General Information 1.1 Please note that, unless otherwise indicated, references to the "Authority" or to DWP throughout these documents mean the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions acting through his/her representatives in the Department for Work and Pensions and references to Potential Supplier means any person or organisation responding or, where the context requires, potentially responding to this Invitation to Tender (ITT) 1.2 These instructions, together with the specification and all other information and documents to which they refer, are designed to ensure that all tenders are given equal and fair consideration. It is important, therefore, that you provide all the information asked for in the format and order specified. 1.3 This document contains the information and instructions Potential Suppliers need to submit a completed tender, for example: Information regarding the procurement, such as the timetable, specific conditions of contract, evaluation process and award/evaluation criteria How to submit questions and requests for clarification Instructions explaining how to complete and submit a tender 1.4 Please read the information and instructions carefully because noncompliance with the instructions may result in disqualification of your tender from this procurement. 1.5 The ITT is issued under the Terms and Conditions of: Cabinet Office Executive Search Framework DWP Additional Contractual Requirements The Terms and Conditions form an integral part of this ITT and will apply throughout this procurement. They set out further rights and obligations which apply to the Authority and successful suppliers. 1.6 Potential Suppliers need to ensure that they have read all the documentation contained within this ITT (Specification, Background Information, DWP Additional Contractual Requirements and these Instructions) thoroughly so that questions or clarifications are not raised unnecessarily. 2. Administration of the Procurement Process 2.1 The Authority will be administering the procurement process electronically via the DWP e-procurement Solution (eps) portal. No hard copy documents will be issued and all communications with the Authority 3

4 (including final submission of tenders) will be conducted via the DWP e- Procurement Solution Portal. 2.2 To ensure all communications relating to this procurement are received the Potential Supplier must ensure that the point of contact it nominates in the DWP e-procurement Solution Portal is accurate at all times. Access to the Portal is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year anywhere in the world via the internet unless notified otherwise by the DWP e-procurement Solution portal. 2.3 Support available to help you to understand and use the system includes: Freephone helpdesk ( ), available Mon-Fri 8am to 6pm (UK time in English language only); Help guides. 2.4 Potential Suppliers must ensure that their DWP e-procurement Solution registration directly relates to the part of the supplier organisation that submits the tender (i.e. some larger suppliers may have several subsidiaries so registration needs to apply to that part of organisation responsible for this particilar requirement). 2.5 Where a consortium/special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) is formed to submit a tender, this must only be submitted by and in the name of the supplier chosen as the Lead supplier for that consortium/spv. 2.6 Where there is a change of supplier chosen to lead a consortium/spv PRIOR to tender submission, the new lead supplier must register on the DWP e-procurement Solution portal and the previous lead supplier should immediately decline their option to submit a tender. 2.7 Should you have any queries with accessing the portal, please contact DWP e-procurement Solution s dedicated supplier helpdesk by calling or by ing: help@bravosolution.co.uk. 3. Conditions Applying to this Tender Open Procedure 3.1 Not relevant to this mini competition. 3.2 Not relevant to this mini competition.. Authority s Terms and Conditions 3.3 Potential Suppliers are not permitted to submit their own terms and conditions, whether standard or otherwise and no material amendments to the Authority s terms and conditions will be considered. Please see 4

5 technical response envelope (Annex R) should you wish to propose nonmaterial changes to the Terms and Conditions. Costs and Expenses 3.4 Potential Suppliers will not be entitled to claim from the Authority any costs or expenses which may be incurred in preparing and/or submitting it s tender. 3.5 This applies whether or not the Supplier or any other organisation is successful and also applies to any additional cost a Potential Supplier may incur if the Authority modifies or amends its requirements or if the Authority cancels this procurement for whatever reason. Confidentiality 3.6 All information supplied by the Authority to you must be treated in confidence and not disclosed to third parties other than is necessary to obtain sureties or quotations for the purpose of submitting this tender. All information supplied by you to the Authority will similarly be treated in confidence except: - I. For the disclosure of such information with regard to the outcome of the procurement process as may be required to be published in the Official Journal of the European Union in accordance with EU Directives or elsewhere in accordance with the requirements of UK government policy on the disclosure of information relating to government contracts; II. That as part of the debriefing process we will inform any eliminated tenderer, who has made an admissable tender, of the characteristics and relative advantages of the successful tender(s), as well as, where appropriate, the qualitative evaluation score(s) achieved by and name(s) of the successful tenderer(s); III. In pursuance of the Authority s obligations under the Freedom of Information Act 2000; IV. That references may be sought from banks, existing or past clients, or other referees submitted by the tenderer. Contract Period 3.7 The contract will be for the period 27/11/2013 to April 2014 unless terminated by the Authority in accordance with the terms of the contract 5

6 Potential Supplier Visits (where appropriate) 3.8 Where it is anticipated that the Authority s premises are to be used for the delivery of the contract the Authority will arrange site visits for all Potential Suppliers who wish to visit the locations concerned. Amendments to the Tender Process or Tender Documents by the Authority 3.9 The Authority reserves the right to vary the tender process and/or amend the tender documents (including this ITT Instructions to Potential Suppliers document) at any time prior to the deadline for receipt of tenders. Any such amendment will be numbered, dated and issued by the Authority via the DWP e-procurement Solution portal. Where amendments are significant, the Authority may at its discretion extend the deadline for receipt of tenders The Authority reserves the right to discontinue this tendering process at any time and not to award a contract. Previous or current contracts with DWP 3.11 Potential Suppliers who currently undertake, or have previously undertaken, work for DWP should note that the tender will be evaluated purely on their response to this ITT. DWP s prior knowledge or experience of organisations will not form part of the evaluation. Inducements 3.12 Offering an inducement of any kind in relation to obtaining this or any other contract with the Authority will disqualify your tender from being considered and may constitute a criminal offence. Collusion 3.13 Please note that qualification envelope of the ITT contains a Certificate of Bona Fide Tendering ; any breach of the undertakings covered under items 1-3 inclusive will invalidate your tender unless it can be demonstrated that adequate remedial action (complete Annex C) has been implemented. Potential Supplier Clarification (Q&A) 3.14 Potential Suppliers have the opportunity to raise questions about the ITT and request clarification about the requirement. All questions raised must be submitted via the DWP e-procurement Solution portal. 6

7 3.15 The Question and Answer log will be published on the DWP e- Procurement Solution portal and updated regularly. It will be the responsibility of the Potential Supplier to monitor the portal for the latest activity The last date for the submission of questions along with the date of the publication of the final Q&A log on the DWP e-procurement Solution portal is shown in the procurement timetable The final date for questions and answers and dissemination allows sufficient time for Potential Suppliers to impact this information before finalising their tenders for submission If a question is deemed by a Potential Supplier to be commercially confidential, then the supplier should indicate that they believe this is the case. The Authority will consider this and if in agreement, will exercise due discretion in handling the question and limiting the circulation of the answer(s) to your organisation Questions not deemed to be commercially confidential will be considered by the Authority to be of significance to all Potential Suppliers. All questions and answers will be made anonymous and made available to all Potential Suppliers via the DWP e-procurement Solution portal. If the Authority intends to follow this course of action it will inform you before sharing the question and response with all Potential Suppliers which will provide you with an opportunity for the question to be withdrawn. Acceptance and Return of Tenders 3.20 By issuing the ITT the Authority is not bound in any way and does not have to accept any tender The tender, comprising of the information set out in the ITT must be completed and submitted in its entirety to the DWP e-procurement Solution portal by the stipulated deadline Tenders will remain unopened until the deadline for receipt has passed and then they will be opened and logged in accordance with DWP procurement procedures. The tenders will undergo an initial compliance check to ensure that all information requested has been received. Tenders will be rejected if the complete information requested is not included as part of the tender documentation. Declaration by Potential Supplier (Technical Envelope) 3.23 This document is your offer to enter into a contract with the Authority. It is the responsibility of the Potential Supplier to ensure that your final submission corresponds with the information stated on this Declaration Statement as this will form the basis of your tender proposal. 7

8 3.24 This document should also act as a final checklist to confirm that you have submitted all of the required responses. To ensure equality of treatment for all Potential Suppliers you must return all of the information required to enable a full evaluation of your tender to take place. If any of the documents are missing at tender opening stage your tender will be classed as non-compliant and will not be evaluated resulting in your disqualification from the procurement exercise You will note that this document requires a scanned signature and if your proposal is successful then a wet signature will be required at contract award stage. Period for which Tenders shall Remain Valid 3.26 Tenders shall remain valid and capable of acceptance for 180 days from the closing date for receipt of tenders. Electronic Auctions 3.27 Not relevant to this mini competition. Variant Proposals 3.28 Variant proposals will not be accepted unless otherwise stated in the Contract Notice Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Providing Services under a Framework Agreement 3.30 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Tax Compliance (ITT- Qualification Envelope) 8

9 3.35 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Potential Suppliers Past Performance (ITT Qualification Envelope) 3.38 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. 4. Data Security Draft Security Plan - (ITT Technical Envelope & Annex E) 4.1 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Off-shoring - (ITT Technical Envelope & Annex F) 4.4 Not relevant to this mini competition. 4.5 Not relevant to this mini competition. 9

10 Baseline Security Standard (Part of Terms and Conditions). 4.6 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. 5. Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 (TUPE) - (ITT Technical Envelope & Annexes G & H) 5.1 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. 6. Freedom of Information Act - (ITT Technical Envelope & Annex Q) 6.1 The Authority is committed to open government and to meeting its legal responsibilities under the Freedom of Information Act All information submitted to the Authority may need to be disclosed by the Authority in response to a request under the Act. If you consider that any of the information included in your tender is commercially sensitive, please identify it and explain (in broad terms) what harm may result from disclosure if a request is received, and the time period applicable to that sensitivity. 6.2 You should be aware that even where you have indicated that information is commercially sensitive, the Authority may be required to disclose it under the terms of the Act if a request is received. Please note that the receipt of material marked confidential or equivalent by the Authority should not be taken to mean that the Authority accepts any duty of confidence by virtue of that marking. If a request is received, the Authority may also be required to disclose details to unsuccessful tenderers. 7. Procurement Timetable 7.1 Set out below is the proposed procurement timetable. This is intended as a guide and, whilst the Authority does not intend to depart significantly from it, there may be occasions especially around obtaining Ministerial Approval where the timetable will be subject to minor change. Activity Date Publication of the ITT to all Potential Suppliers 04/11/2013 Q&A - Set up and run an online/electronic Q&A facility 04/11/2013 Final date for Q&A and dissemination to Potential 12/11/2013 Suppliers 10

11 Deadline for return of tenders 15/11/2013 Evaluate tenders 18/11/2013 Possible supplier presentations 20/11/2013 Obtain Ministerial Approval to award contract Note: The following steps and associated dates are subject to change depending on the time taken to get approval Award notification issued to successful and unsuccessful 22-26/11/2013 tenderers Sign contract 22-26/11/2013 Go Live 27-29/11/ Tender Submission Process Background 8.1 The DWP e-procurement Solution portal relies on the completion of up to 3 envelopes which will contain all of the information the Authority requires to enable full evaluation to take place. All information should be uploaded as per instructions into the relevant envelopes on the DWP e- Procurement Solution portal. Qualification Envelope Is used for gathering information to qualify Potential Suppliers for further evaluation Not relevant to this mini competition. Technical Envelope Is used for gathering information to allow for full evaluation of the technical side of the proposal Commercial Envelope Is used to gather the Pricing Proposal Tender Completion 8.2 The information or text contained within the ITT (including its Annexes) and your response, any variation of them and any formal interchange of correspondence or information, may be incorporated, whether by reference or otherwise, into any subsequent contract/framework agreement that the Authority may enter into as a result of this ITT. 8.3 To participate in this procurement, Potential Suppliers are required to submit a fully compliant tender and must answer all questions accurately and concisely as possible. Only information provided in response to the ITT will be evaluated. To ensure equality of treatment of all Potential Suppliers the Authority reserves the right to reject any non compliant tender. 8.4 You should answer all questions using the templates provided, presenting them in the same sequence and using the same references. Please ensure all answers are self contained with no cross-referencing. 11

12 Only information entered into the appropriate answer boxes (which may be extended as necessary but should not exceed any applicable word limit/page count) or in additional documents supplied as requested will be taken into consideration for the purposes of evaluating the tender. 8.5 Responses must not exceed the pre-set margins and space allocation. In some cases the Authority may put a word limit on your response to some or all questions. These limits are provided in the Invitation to Tender document and any response in excess of these allocations will be disregarded and will not be evaluated. 8.6 Therefore, bullets, tables, graphs and charts in support of your responses are all permitted. Responses must be presented using Arial font size 12 (English Language and black typeface) this includes instances where information may be tabulated as part of the response. The only exception permitted is for illustrative screen shots, graphs and charts, which should be presented within the allocated page limit for the question they are relevant to and must not be embedded separately as this information will be disregarded. 8.7 Tenders must be completed using Microsoft Word 2007 and MS Excel format. PDF Files are also acceptable. Files submitted in Microsoft Project format will not be accepted. 8.8 All acronyms and abbreviations, if used, must be fully explained. 8.9 Where a YES, NO or Not Applicable response is required, please click the appropriate YES, NO or Not Applicable statement on the drop down options bar Tender Submission Procedure 8.10 The ITT and any attachments have been specifically designed to be compatible with DWP e-tendering and e-evaluation requirements and must not, under any circumstance, be altered All tenders must be submitted to the Authority using the DWP e- Procurement Solution Portal. Tenders submitted by any other means will not be accepted A tender may be completed and submitted at any time before the tender submission deadline using the DWP e-procurement Solution Portal. Instructions explaining how to submit and complete the tender to the Authority are located within the e-sourcing Portal The Potential Supplier is responsible for ensuring that its tender has been successfully completed and all information uploaded to the DWP e- Procurement Solution Portal prior to the tender submission deadline. 12

13 8.14 Please allow sufficient time to submit your tender, it is recommended that the Potential Supplier allows time for a final check to be undertaken prior to the submission deadline. It will not be possible for you to upload any further information after the tender submission deadline. IT problems within your own system will not be considered reasonable grounds for late submission A Potential Supplier may modify and resubmit its tender at any time prior to the tender submission deadline. Tenders cannot be modified by Potential Suppliers after the tender submission deadline. Upon the tender submission deadline, the Potential Supplier must ensure that it has only submitted a single tender through the DWP e-procurement Solution Portal. The only exception to this is where the department has stated in the contract notice that variant proposals will be accepted and the Potential Supplier has chosen to submit a variant proposal in addition to the main compliant proposal Financial information should be submitted in the format requested (usually MS Excel). Documents which have related financial information should be submitted in GBP( ). Instructions on the DWP e-procurement Solution Portal will clearly identify the format and where these documents should be uploaded. Labelling your Tender Forms (File Names) 8.17 Potential Suppliers will be invited to submit responses to online questions and upload a suite of documentation that reflect the requirements of the ITT. It is vitally important that when using the DWP e-procurement Solution Portal Potential Suppliers correctly name any documents and attachments that are required to be uploaded as a response to questions within each of the envelopes.. Qualification Envelope Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Technical Envelope 8.23 This envelope contains specific questions to which a response is required. It is this information which will enable the Authority to carry out 13

14 a qualitative evaluation of the proposal. Where there is a requirement to upload attachments to questions within this envelope the suggested format is as follows. ITT Response required Draft Security Plan Annex E Draft Security Plan How your response should be uploaded Contract title (i.e. supply of widgets) Annex E - Draft Security Plan Company Name (i.e. ABC Ltd) Commercial Envelope 8.24 This envelope is where the Pricing Proposal should be uploaded. This information should be uploaded as follows. ITT Response required Pricing Proposal Commercial Envelope, Annex S Pricing Proposal How your response should be uploaded Contract title (i.e. supply of widgets), Annex S Pricing Proposal Company Name (i.e. ABC Ltd) Action to take where requirement has been divided into Lots 8.25 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Deadline for Submission of Tenders 8.28 All tenders must be received by the Authority by the tender submission deadline which is shown in the procurement timetable To ensure that all Potential Suppliers are treated fairly tenders received after the tender submission deadline may be rejected by the Authority. The decision whether to reject a tender received after the tender submission deadline is made entirely at the Authority s discretion A Potential Supplier may withdraw from this procurement by choosing not to submit a tender by the tender submission deadline. It would be useful to the department if you can advise us in advance that you will not be submitting a proposal and if possible the reasons behind your decision. Additional Materials, Documents and Attachments 8.31 No additional documentation should be submitted with a tender unless specifically requested by the Authority 14

15 8.32 Information that forms part of general company literature or promotional brochures will not form part of the evaluation process and should not be submitted The tender should not contain any inserted, pasted or embedded pictures or documents (image files, Adobe Acrobat documents or other Word documents) unless specifically requested by the Authority 8.34 Any additional documents requested by the Authority must be clearly referenced within the body of the tender using a unique, un-ambiguous and relevant file name. They must be saved using MS Word (in Web Page, filtered format only), MS Excel, MS Power Point, Adobe Acrobat or jpeg formats. No other file formats should be used. Subcontractors and Consortia 8.35 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Changes to the Contracting Arrangements 8.41 Not relevant to this mini competition Merlin Standard Not relevant to this mini competition. TENDER EVALUATION Overview of the Evaluation Process 9.1 All Competitive Procurements have both selection and award stages as defined in the Public Contract Regulations. 9.2 Not relevant to this mini competition All compliant tenders will be subject to separate Qualitative and Financial Evaluation. 15

16 Selection Appraisal 9.4 Not relevant to this mini competition. Qualitative Evaluation (Award Stage) 9.5 Evaluators will assess responses to the questions in the ITT and will award scores based on the award criteria and sub-criteria set out in 9.11 and 9.12 of this guidance. 9.6 The criteria are shown in descending order of importance Financial Evaluation (Award Stage) 9.7 The financial evaluation will be based on the information provided in the financial proposal documentation and evaluated as the guidance shown in 9.13 of this guidance. 9.8 Financial evaluation will be undertaken by the Professional Services Team who are different evaluators to those individuals involved with the quality evaluation process. Evaluation Summary Table Response Heading Marking Methodology Whole Document Compliance checks to ensure that tenders include all the relevant Preliminary Tender Compliance information requested as part of the ITT Check and that it has been submitted in the format required. Please complete Declaration by Tenders not meeting requirements Potential Supplier will give the Authority grounds for exclusion for non-compliance. Qualification Envelope Not relevant to this mini competition. Draft Security Plan Technical Envelope You must provide a Draft Security Plan at Annex E DWP Offshore Proposal Questionnaire Not Required TUPE Contrary View to that of the Authority Not Required If applicable, you must complete Offshoring questionnaire at Annex F If you have a contrary view to that of the Authority as to whether or not TUPE applies you must complete Annex G. Response is required prior to the tender return date. 16

17 TUPE (Employee Liability Information) To be completed by current contractor and supplied to all Potential Suppliers Not Required Annex H is used when the Authority believes TUPE will apply. DN to Procurement Team If you are of the view that TUPE applies you must provide all the information necessary covering all Employee Liability Information and upload where indicated. Qualitative Evaluation (Specific Service Delivery Questions) Freedom of Information Proposed amendments Declaration by Potential Supplier PLEASE NOTE: - Failure to provide all of the documents requested will invalidate your tender. Pricing Proposal (Financial Evaluation) Linked to Annex S Tenders will be scored using predetermined scoring criteria as detailed within this document. Not scored but if consider that any of the information included as part of your tender to be commercially sensitive you must complete Annex Q Not scored. Please complete Annex R should you wish to suggest non-material changes to the Terms and Conditions Please complete and attach the declaration provided to confirm that all the information requested by the Authority has been completed and uploaded as part of your tender proposal. This is your commitment that you offer to enter into a contract with the Authority as stipulated in the declaration. Commercial Envelope The financial evaluation will be undertaken separately to the Qualitative Evaluation using predetermined scoring criteria as detailed within this document. Your pricing proposal must be uploaded to Annex S Award Criteria and Weighting 9.9 The information provided in the tender proposal will be evaluated against the pre-determined Award Criteria as stated in the Invitation to Tender The ITT set up on the DWP e-procurement Solution Portal requests Potential Suppliers to submit responses which directly correspond with the Award Criteria. The overarching Award Criteria will often be made up of sub-criteria by which the Award Criteria will be evaluated The table below gives full details on how the qualitative side of proposal will be evaluated. 17

18 Evaluation Criteria Weighting (%) Experience 30 Evidence demonstrating that the supplier and personnel have a good track record in recent exercises; Experience of working with both large complex organisations akin to DWP and NDPBs, such as NEST; Evidence of experience of recruiting to the type of roles specified. Evidence of encouraging applications from talented individuals from a range of backgrounds of underrepresented groups through relevant search and processes. Quality of Proposal 20 Proposals that demonstrate knowledge and experience in attracting high quality candidates from a diverse field, including those from under represented groups; Information on likely targets for the role and sources; Is the proposal achievable and what are the timescales involved? Issues and Potential Problems 10 The challenges faced by the consultants; Consultants to identify in their proposal any limitation that may impact on the success of this exercise; Is the proposal achievable and what are the timescales involved? Areas that may be off limits to consultants, for example other clients that consultants are working for that they therefore cannot poach people from 18

19 Personnel 10 Details of the partners, consultants and researchers used at each stage of the process including: Demonstrating that the personnel who work on the assignment have the required level of experience and qualifications; Availability/continuity i.e. will have the key personnel available for the full term of the engagement. Qualitative Scoring Methodology 9.12 The responses to the ITT will then be scored against the criteria and weightings stipulated in the table above using the scoring scale set out below. Score Description 0 Evidence provided fails to satisfy the stated requirement 1 Evidence provided does not satisfy significant parts of the requirement 2 Evidence provided satisfies most of the requirement with minor gaps in certain areas 3 Well detailed evidence provided which fully meets the requirement Price Evaluation Methodology 9.13 Price Evaluation will be weighted at 30% of the award criteria. The Potential Supplier s fees will be at an agreed fixed price with any additional costs being borne solely by them. The costs of any advertising will also be included in the fee paid to the Potential Supplier. The Professional Services Team will perform a relative assessment of supplier s rate card. The combined scores of the qualitative and price evaluation will be aggregated and a merit list produced. The supplier that demonstrates the most economically advantageous proposal will be awarded the contract 19

20 Tender Clarification 9.14 DWP may need to clarify details of your tender and in those instances DWP will send any questions using the DWP e-procurement Solution portal to the named person (by ) that is registered on the system, who should arrange for a reply to be provided by the stipulated deadline DWP may seek independent financial and market advice to validate information declared, or to assist in the evaluation. Potential Supplier Presentations 9.16 After evaluation the Authority may undertake presentations with a number of short-listed Potential Suppliers if a clear winner has not emerged. This process will only involve those Potential Suppliers whose proposals have top scored in the evaluation and only when the panels deliberations have been unable to produce a clear winner Following on from these presentations the Authority reserve the right to revisit and amend scores as may be necessary. 10. Contract Award Parent Company Guarantee (PCG) 10.1 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Ranking of Supplier Submissions Recommendation for Contract Award 10.4 The tender process has been designed to ensure that tenders are evaluated fairly to ascertain the most economically advantageous tender and once the qualitative and financial aspects have been evaluated the Authority will produce a ranked merit list based on this tender process The Potential Supplier, who obtains the highest overall score from the evaluation process, taking into account the Award Criteria weightings, will be recommended for contract award 10.6 Before any contract can be entered into the Authority is mandated to seek and obtain Independent, Ministerial Approval and possibly Crown Representative Approval Independent Approval 20

21 The results of the Qualitative and Price Evaluation Process (resultant rankings along with the marks awarded) will be independently checked and verified by individual(s) not previously involved in the procurement process. Subject to this Independent Approval the Department will then seek Ministerial Approval before an award of contract can be made Ministerial Approval The final decision to award will be subject to Ministerial Approval. No communication of any details regardless of whether a tenderer has been successful or otherwise will be issued until this approval has been granted and authorised by the Minister concerned. Once this approval has been communicated to the procurement team they will have responsibility for the issue of the appropriate sucessful/unsucessful letters to all those suppliers that submitted a response to the ITT Crown Representative Approval Not relevant to this mini competition. Mandatory Standstill Period 10.7 Not relevant to this mini competition Not relevant to this mini competition.. Publication of Contract Award on Contracts Finder 10.9 Not relevant to this mini competition. 11. Post Contract Award Contract Documentation 11.1 The Authority will be responsible for producing a final contract document and issuing to the successful supplier. DWP Supplier Charter 11.2 Not relevant to this mini competition.. Sustainable Development 21

22 11.3 Not relevant to this mini competition.. Diversity and Equality 11.4 Not relevant to this mini competition.. Apprenticeships and Skills 11.5 Not relevant to this mini competition DWP Complaints Procedure 12.1 The Authority has published a commercial complaints process for use during competitive procurement. This process gives details of : - DWP Commercial Code of Practice Competitive Tendering The DWP Commercial Complaints Process Information to accompany a commercial complaint 22